Online advertising spend rose 14% year-on-year during the first quarter of this year, according to an IAB survey conducted by PwC.

However, spending dipped quarter-on-quarter (see chart below).

"If you compare how this stacks up with other media in NZ, television released their quarterly figures with 4% growth in the same period up $4.4 million on the first quarter of 2011 vs $11.09 million for online,” trumpeted IAB (Interactive Advertising Bureau) NZ general manager Alisa Higgins.

Click chart to enlarge.

The Advertising Standards Authority recently released figures showing TV accounted for 28.4% of total advertising spend during 2011, but with scant year-on-year growth ($618 million to 2010's $607 million). TV pushed newspapers ($582 million/26%) into second place with fast-growing internet ads ($328 million/15%) cementing third place ahead of radio.

For the first quarter of 2012, the IAB said spending on online video ads increased 21% over the year-ago quarter - albeit off a low base - to $2.1 million. However, it fell from the previous quarter's $2.64 million.

In 2011, mobile ad spending blipped onto the IAB's radar for the first time at $632,092.

Ms Higgins told NBR ONLINE the IAB would not break out quarterly figures, but she expected mobile spending to reach $1 million this year.

Looking at total online spend during the first quarter:

Classifieds (including Trade Me verticals and the likes of Seek) were up 17%

"The automotive category moved up to fourth place at 10.77% share of display ad spend which is the highest ever share for this category in New Zealand. Beautiful rich media ads help car manufacturers showcase new features and benefits and video display advertising should see an increase in ad spend during 2012,” said IAB chair and MSN NZ general manager Liz Fraser.

of course online media will grow faster - its significantly cheaper and is backed up by robust analytics so advertisers can determine ROI easily compared to dealing with flakey TV advwertising sales teams